The Army said the team was doing a mass formation Saturday and while they were trying to do a break-away, Hood collided with a Navy skydiver and was knocked unconscious.
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Investigator Mario Johnson says that Hood was pronounced dead just after 4 p.m. Connecticut Sunday in Chicago. Hood’s family had previously said through Facebook posts that injuries were life-threatening.
Fetzer said Hood possessed all the positive attributes instilled in student-athletes, including mental toughness, “a little bit of grit”, and a strong will and desire, all which served him well in the Army. “It’s heartwrenching”.
The other parachutist landed on a nearby beach and has been treated for a broken leg.
The Golden Knights demonstration workforce has been placed on a “security stand down” after the dying of Sgt.
In a statement Sunday afternoon, Mayor Rahm Emanuel expressed sadness over the untimely death and said Hood was “An American hero”.
Shore said he hopes to send the photos to Hood’s family, knowing they capture the exuberance of being a Golden Knight, and clearly show Hood died doing what he loved.
The military parachutists were attempting to perform a “bomb burst” group maneuver, where 13 skydivers hold hands in a circle for about 15 seconds during descent. “He just looked limp”, said Matt Viner, another witness. “He was transported to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where he underwent surgery to relieve pressure on the brain and was in critical condition, according to Donna Dixon, a spokesperson for the Golden Knights”. He enlisted in the Army about 10 years ago, eventually serving as a platoon sergeant and receiving two Bronze Stars, two meritorious service medals, five Army commendation medals, among other honors.
Hood, 32, began jumping in 2010 and had logged more than 500 free fall jumps.
Asked whether his mom still anxious, he said: “always”.
Friends from the army have paid respect and grievance over Hood’s passing calling the latter a “best friend to all”.
A U.S. Army parachutist suffered fatal injuries following a mid-air collision and fall at the city’s Air and Water Show Saturday.
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Hall, a member of the Golden Knights from 1969 to 1974, also recalled the 1973 crash in North Carolina of a C47 military aircraft carrying members of the Golden Knights that killed all on board.
